To me, art is about human emotion, emotional connection, acceptance, and support. When I was a child, I felt like I could not share my feeling and emotions with anybody. I felt more connected to my toys and books than humans. I started making art early on to compensate. Art gave me the sense of peace, happiness, and belonging I was looking for. I hope to share the balance and joy that I found in art, with other people by creating things that channel beauty, harmony, fun and happiness.

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BIO

​I am a classically trained sculptor and painter with Eastern European roots. I live and work in Vancouver, BC. I was born and raised in Soviet Russia on its Far-Eastern frontier, in the port city of Vladivostok on the Pacific coast, near Japan and China. I started classical art training at the age of 10, graduating from a Children’s Traditional Art School at the age of 14. Then, while studying linguistics at the local university, I spent three years doing extensive art residency programs with two large-scale Russian porcelain manufacturers, resulting in many of my sculptural designs being adapted for their mass production as sculptural souvenirs. In 2000, I relocated to Moscow to study professional sculpture at the Moscow Stroganov Art Academy. I graduated the Academy in 2006 with an MFA-equivalent diploma in monumental and decorative art with a Major in Sculpture. I immigrated to Canada in 2008. Since then, I have been participating in numerous national and international solo and group art shows and competitions. In 2017, I won a design challenge contest and created a porcelain statuette for the Canadian Legend Award which was granted to David Foster by the College of Performing Arts. I was a finalist of multiple international art competitions including the 2nd International Ceramic Art Competition in Roseville, CA, the 22nd National Ceramic Competition by the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, Texas, and the 5th International Sculpture Competition by Musée Départemental Breton à Quimper in France. In 2013, I was a finalist of the Vancouver Ironclad Art manhole design challenge. I have participated in multiple art residencies including the Allerton Park Art Residency by the University of Illinois in 2024, a two-year residency with Pottery Northwest Ceramic Arts Centre in Seattle from 2018 to 2019, and two art residencies with St. George School in Vancouver. I was a recipient of a Vancouver DTES artist grant, and a Wally Grant in Seattle. I am a member of Sculptors’ Society of BC. My work was featured in multiple publications including Amilcar UK Magazine, The Vancouver Sun, Georgia Straight, The Vancouver Courier, The Westender, MonteCristo Magazine, The Province, Canadian Immigrant, and on the Global News.